Review: The Dinner Party

The Dinner Party by Rebecca Heath
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Note: I received an advanced copy of this book from Aria & Aries via NetGalley.

In the scorching summer of 1979, four couples in the suburban neighborhood of Ridgefield come together for their weekly dinner party. It's a seemingly ordinary evening for friends to reconnect, showcase their ideal marriages, and escape from the demands of parenthood. However, behind the well-lit windows and manicured lawns, secrets simmer.

The tranquil evening takes a chilling turn when Frank Callaghan discovers his 4-month-old daughter, Megan, missing from her crib during his check on the sleeping children. The dinner guests insist they saw nothing, and no one left the table.

Fast forward forty years, Megan's sister, Amanda, still searches for answers. A stranger arrives at her doorstep, claiming to be Megan. Skepticism fills the air until they see what she holds: Megan's blanket, taken the night she disappeared.

Megan's sudden return raises numerous questions. Where has she been all these years? What really happened on that fateful night? How well do any of them truly know their neighbors? Rebecca Heath delivers a dark and twisty domestic thriller set in an ostensibly idyllic suburban neighborhood, where family secrets are kept deeply buried.

This novel was an engaging read, but I found myself predicting a significant plot twist about halfway through the book. The characters from the "dinner party from hell" night sometimes became a bit muddled in my mind. I wished for a deeper exploration of their relationships during that time, which would have added more depth to the story. Additionally, the podcast-style writing, while an interesting concept, didn't quite resonate with my personal reading preferences.

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